This is not the Disney story of Pinocchio. This story is a very harsh one written in 1883. Pinocchio is always in great trouble. I would only read these bedtime stories to an older child, because they could cause nightmares.
I Like the pictures, they are beautiful. The framing around the pictures is wonderful.
This is a cute story of ten little piglets who love to go wandering at night while Mamma sleeps. The illustrations are beautiful. The rhymes are wonderful. Great bedtime story.
This is a cute story of dinosaurs playing basketball. The pictures are great and colorful. The text makes the story move and exciting.
In Monkey Trouble, book 127 in the Boxcar Children Mystery series, the Alden children, Henry, 14, Jesse, 12, Violet, 10, and Benny, 6, spend two days touring a zoo to see the new baby animals. They buy a camera to share and enter a contest for the best photo of the animals. During the tour, a camera goes missing, a Capuchin monkey escapes from its cage, and suspicions and mysteries abound. By recalling memories and making astute observations, the Aldens find answers to each problem encountered. Monkey Trouble is typical of the many stories written and inspired by Gertrude Chandler Warner. These chapter books are written at a third or fourth grade reading level and relate mystery-solving adventures of the self-sufficient Alden children. Most chapters contain a black and white pencil illustration by Robert Papp.
Rosa and the Water Pony is sure to be a hit with fans of mermaid stories. Rosa and her friends Melody, Sula, and Jasmine decide to enter a contest with a pearl necklace as the grand prize. Rosa’s cousin, Coral, arrives just as they start to put their plan into action. With Coral’s help, they use magic to transform a seahorse into a water pony. Mean sisters, Myrtle and Muriel, come to watch. As they practice riding with flips and twists, Coral out-rides them all. Rosa’s feelings are hurt and she quickly swims away. The next day, Rosa is still gone and Sparkle, the water pony is missing. The mermaids find a note, supposedly from Rosa, suggesting that Sparkle is in Five Fathom Forest, a place full of sea monsters. The search includes some surprising twists. The friends reunite, perform with joy, and win the competition. With large font and Tom Knight’s pen and ink line drawings on every page, beginning readers will enjoy this transition from picture to chapter books. This is book one in the Mermaid Mysteries series. Subsequent books focus on each of the other mermaid friends.
Ten year old Aldo Zelnick, AKA Bacon Boy, journals the high and low points of his life in this sketchbook. Written in a Wimpy Kid and Big Nate style, Aldo befriends Danny, a deaf student with a quick sense of humor and Bee, a home-schooled neighbor who takes a few classes at school. He finds himself “dumbstruck” around the new art teacher as he adjusts to life as a fifth grader. Many readers will identify with Aldo’s predicaments in this fourth book of the series. Each book focuses vocabulary on a letter of the alphabet. Other books in the series are: Artsy-Fartsy, Bogus, Cahoots, and Egghead, so far. (Finicky, coming soon.) Kemdra Spanjer’s black and white illustrations are a great match with Aldo’s quirky situations. There is a large glossary in the back of the book, along with a map of Aldo’s neighborhood, a sign language alphabet, and notes about the author and illustrator. The Aldo Zelnick website offers an A – Z audio dictionary. This terrific series will be enjoyed by all readers and constantly in demand.
After her mother dies, Hailey’s father sends her away to an elite boarding school in Vermont. Here Hailey is a top student, is dating the son of two celebrities, and is favored by all her teachers. But Hailey goes through a “bad girl” streak, making risky decisions, damaging school property, skipping school, and cheating on her boyfriend.
I’m not sure what lesson the author was after, because Hailey’s life improves after becoming a bad girls, strengthening her relationship with her father and finding a new boyfriend more suitable for her. As an adult reader, I was unhappy with this turn in the plot.
This is a lovely little book of 29 Christian prayers for children. The illustrations are colorful and sweet and compliment the text of the prayers. There are a few prayers for each season plus Christmas and Easter. I enjoyed the descriptive and rhyming writing style and found the prayers to be simple without being boring. This will be a nice addition to our catholic elementary school library.
This book is an excellent source for our elementary students who are interested in or studying common dolphins. The chapters include common dolphins; size, shaped and color; where they live; senses; defense; food; babies; and behaviors. There are common dolphin facts, a glossary, index and additional web sites listed in the back of the book. The information was presented in a clear manner with nice basic coverage of each topic. The text was not too technical while still using some scientific language.
This is a wonderful picture book version of the classic Nutcracker Tale. The illustrations are bright, colorful and engaging, complimenting the text well. The story is well-written, flowing nicely as a read-aloud. Some versions of the Nutcracker can be a bit frightening for younger children during the battle with the Mouse King but this one is fine for even very young children. Our elementary school students love to check out the Nutcracker around Christmas time and this one will be a lovely addition to our collection.